In telephone systems, a system for transmitting caller identification information such as the caller's telephone number and/or name has been in existence for many years, and traditionally referred to as “caller ID” information. Individuals must subscribe to a caller ID service plan and configure their telephones with devices that display the caller ID information. If a telephone number is designated as a subscriber to caller ID, the telephone company sends a data packet relating to the identification of the caller while the telephone is ringing. The data packet is generated by the telephone company, who can identify the telephone number of a caller and the owner of that telephone number. The data packet is decoded by an external display device or an internal device within the telephone that displays the caller ID information. This service then allows the recipient to visually inspect the identification of the caller before deciding whether or not to answer the telephone.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,016,482 issued to J. W. Moss et al. on Mar. 21, 2006, discloses an improvement to the basic caller ID services by also transmitting the calling party's name within a customer group. In one embodiment of the invention, a user dials a destination telephone number. A call to the destination telephone is received at a service switching point and triggers a query to be sent to a switching control point. The switching control point performs a lookup in a caller number/name database. When the lookup system returns a caller name, a response is transmitted to the service switching point that includes the caller's name. The call to the destination telephone number is terminated, and the caller's name is forwarded as the caller ID information to the destination telephone number.
While the provision of the name information is useful, there are occasions where it would be desirable to be able to tailor the caller ID information on a called-number basis. For example, if an individual calls his local bank on a weekly basis to check an account balance, the use of caller ID information including his customer ID/bank account information would significantly increase the efficiency of the call, as well as limiting the number of prompts requiring input from the calling party. In another situation, an individual may need to contact a pharmacy regarding personal medications, again listening to and responding to a series of prompts. The ability to specifically define the call set-up information sent to the pharmacy to include prescription refill numbers when this call is initiated would again result in improved communication efficiency.
Therefore, while the provision of caller ID services has been beneficial in allowing a called party to recognize the “identity” of the calling party (either by name, calling telephone number, or both), a need remains to allow for an individual's “caller ID” information to be customized for pre-specified called numbers.